UTEPILS STAFF

Eric Harper

HEAD BREWER

If there’s such thing as an over-qualified head brewer, it’s Eric Harper. (Don’t tell him. We want to keep him.) Eric has an unbelievable resume, including many years honing his craft at other breweries as well as a prestigious diploma from London’s Institute of Brewing and Distilling (yes, that’s a thing). In spite of all that, when asked why he’s so awesome at his job, his answer is: “I love beer.” That passion, skill, and experience shows up in every sip. The team says they hit the trifecta with Eric, whom they describe as a chef, food scientist, and cool guy all rolled into one.

Kelsey Bomgaars

TAPROOM MANAGER

That smiling face you see when you walk into the Fernweh taproom? It’s Kelsey Bomgaars. (Okay, it could be just about anyone. There are a lot of smiling faces at Fernweh, because we brew really good beer that makes people happy.) But Kelsey’s a huge reason they’re all so happy. She loves coming to work every day, and it shows: Kelsey makes everyone who crosses her path feel like royalty—staff and customers alike.

Kelsey’s responsible for managing staff and making sure everything runs smoothly in the taproom, and she also had her hand in designing the taproom. She can do just about everything, aside from picking her favorite Utepils beer. She says that’s like picking a favorite child.

Dan Justesen

PRESIDENT

Don’t let Dan’s self-deprecating humor fool you—he knows he has a good thing going here. “I was a total nerd in high school,” he says. “Now I get to live this big adventure.” His title might be president, but his real job is professional people person. Dan’s specialty: “Find really great people to do the work I don’t know how to do, and support them in their roles.” It’s working. If you ask his team, Dan’s gift for vision and leadership makes him the Pied Piper of beer. People just want to be part of what he’s doing. (It doesn’t hurt that what he’s doing is creating delicious beer.)

Before starting Utepils, Dan honed his brewing chops as co-owner and president of Vine Park Brewing. He also served on the board of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild, including a stint as president. So he’s still a nerd, but now he’s a super social beer nerd with a really cool job.

Jim Moore

CFO/PARTNER

How often do you see a CFO hang sheetrock? It’s all in a day’s work for Jim Moore. Jim has serious financial credentials, including 20+ years in corporate banking and multiple gigs as a financial assassin for high-growth companies. Still, he’s best suited to the all-hands-on-deck philosophy at Utepils. In fact, it’s his favorite thing about his job. “Since joining Utepils, I’ve used every skill set that I’ve accumulated in my entire life,” he beams. Jim isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, but he keeps the books clean as a whistle.

With Jim on the job, no one has to worry about the numbers. And that means we can all spend more time with the beer.

Jeff McClure

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Director of Operations is the ultimate catch-all title, which means Jeff wears more hats than a Dr. Seuss character. He handles everything from general maintenance to running special events and working with the distributor. Fortunately, no one is better at juggling a heavy, complex workload. “There’s not a lot of gray area in my life,” Jeff says. “I make quick decisions and I’m willing to take on anything and see it through to completion.”

He’s not kidding. In his former life as an event manager, Jeff once had a tornado decimate an event just prior to airing on national television, and he rebuilt everything before anyone could blink an eye. And then he cracked a beer.

Megan O’Neal

VIPER PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Megan’s official title: VIPer Program Director. But that’s a little stodgy, so feel free to substitute Queen, Tsar, Perk Purveyor, and/or Benevolent Dictator. They all boil down to the same cool gig: Megan manages our VIP program. (Psst—VIPer stands for Very Important Patron, Enthusiast, and Recruiter.) VIPers get tons of awesome benefits, not the least of which is a lot of free beer. Needless to say, Megan’s a popular gal.

With a background in software and tons of experience in corporate America, Megan has analytical and organizational chops to spare—but she’s also super-friendly, which is why she also regularly bartends at the taproom. Come say hi, order a beer from Megan, and ask her about becoming a VIPer.

John Oxley

SALES REPRESENTATIVE

Shortly before the soft opening, John Oxley walked into the Fernweh taproom—and never looked back. (Okay, we usually let him leave at night.) His conversation with one of the owners morphed into an impromptu interview. And even though there wasn’t a formal job available, John got along so well with everyone that we found a spot for him. John started out by working security and is now the Assistant Taproom Manager, which sees him doing everything from serving customers to throwing kegs around.

John describes his job as a stroke of good luck. “The product is spectacular, the team is delightful, and our customer base is awesome,” he says. “I’ve worked in a lot of bars, and this is the nicest crowd I’ve ever been around.”

Chris Brinkman

ASSISTANT TAPROOM MANAGER

Assistant taproom manager Chris comes to Utepils with nearly two decades of experience in the hospitality industry, and he can handle anything we throw at him. He loves shooting the breeze with customers—it’s one of the best things about his job. But if you’re inclined to complain to him about the weather ‘round these parts, you might be barking up the wrong tree. Chris recently relocated to the Twin Cities after spending 14 years in Duluth. (People from Duluth see our weather forecasts and giggle patronizingly. It gets rough up there.)

So even though the word Utepils roughly translates to “the first beer enjoyed with friends in the sunshine after a long, hard winter,” Chris doesn’t need to wait for a warm-up to enjoy a cold one. (And neither do you. It’s always the right temperature in the Fernweh taproom.)

Kelly Watson

For Kelly Watson, the title doesn’t matter. She just wanted to be part of the team. When the full-time school social worker decided to take on some extra work over the summer, she only had one place in mind: Utepils. “I told them I’d do anything—I’d scrub their toilets,” Kelly says. Instead, Kelly worked with the Utepils Social Aid and Pleasure Club (“making a difference in the North Minneapolis community is such a passion of mine”) and helping to coordinate events. She enjoyed it so much that she stayed on after the school year started, using her spare time to pitch in wherever she’s needed.

Kelly’s super-versatile style at Utepils is fitting. When asked about her favorite beer, Kelly says: “When I started working here, it was Pils. But now I can’t pick a favorite because I love them all. Today it’s the Kolsch Style, but it always changes.” Kind of like her job description!

Jordan Nordby

From brewing, running canning lines, to packaging, Jordan does a little bit of everything. Her education in Chemical Engineering and previous experience in brewing gives her an edge when it comes to beer, and she’s here to make sure the chemistry between you and Utepils’ beer is just right. Her hobbies, like her work life, include a little of everything – hiking, traveling, being outdoors, and generally enjoying the Minnesotan lifestyle. Besides the obvious perks of working for a brewery, Jordan likes the supportive coworkers and the opportunity to learn new things. And she can’t decide what she likes more: the relaxed atmosphere and people at Utepils, or their beer.

Ally Dahlberg

Ally is the face of Utepils Brewing for many bars and restaurants in the metro area and beyond. She understands the value of human connection and keeping up with her customers, which she learned from her previous job in catering management and event planning. She insists that even in such a competitive market, the beer really does sell itself (though we think she’s doing a pretty good job). Ally loves that her job lets her cultivate new relationships, act as a brand ambassador, and be really nerdy about beer. Her other skills include a proficient karaoke repertoire and being an awesome mom.

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